Chapter 636: Chapter 408: The Tribe
A moment later, the two harmless-looking children were invited to the tribe, and an auntie brought them some hot milk.
The freshly milked cow’s milk, boiled and served directly, had a strong milky aroma, but tasted very mild, almost like water, with a bit of an unfamiliar raw taste.
However, neither of them said anything, calmly drinking the milk, warming themselves by the fire, with simple cowhide clothing draped over them.
During the day it was very hot, but now as the sun was setting, the temperature dropped rapidly. Wearing such thick fur clothing, warming by the fire, and drinking warm milk, they surprisingly didn’t feel hot at all.
"You two little ones, why are you running around the prairie by yourselves? If you get lost, you won’t find your way back home."
An old lady was cooking lamb, with a big pot full of snow-white thick soup and the aroma of lamb, all a test of one’s endurance.
Xiaomi inhaled deeply: "No, tomorrow morning we’ll run towards the direction of the sun and we’ll be home soon."
"Grandma, this lamb smells so good. Your cattle and sheep are really robust."
Wei Ziang didn’t forget his main purpose.
At home, they ate a lot of goats, but the taste of goats and sheep is different.
Goat meat has a strong gamey taste, whereas mutton has almost none. With simple cooking, you can taste the freshness of mutton.
He had eaten it several times in Lishi City. Here, because it is close to the prairie, beef and mutton are not rare, and even roasted camels from farther away are available.
Xiaomi kept nodding; they hadn’t eaten anything tonight and were truly hungry now.
But they didn’t expect to catch the prairie tribe’s dinner, which made it worthwhile.
The old lady laughed: "Our sheep eat the tenderest grass and drink the cleanest lake water, so naturally they are very delicious."
Wei Ziang said: "Grandma, my parents also like eating this. My eldest brother is getting married soon, and my little sister and I want to buy some cattle and sheep to entertain guests, and we happened to meet you. May I ask if your tribe sells cattle and sheep?"
Wei Ziang’s lies came as naturally as breathing, needing no preparation at all.
Xiaomi had long witnessed this and was not at all surprised now.
Maybe because Wei Ziang appeared too sincere, or perhaps in the old lady’s eyes, they were just two pretty and well-behaved children.
The old lady not only did not doubt them, but even chuckled and said: "Of course, these cattle and sheep are raised not only for our consumption but also sold to merchants from Xuyu Dynasty. However, the price must be negotiated with our leader."
Just as she said this, a large man came over, his voice deep and rich: "Mother, did you call me?"
Wei Ziang and Xiaomi looked up together and realized it was one of the men who had brought them in just now.
The old lady pointed to the two little kids in front of her: "They said they wanted to buy some cattle and sheep, so I told them to talk to you."
Only then did Wei Ziang react, immediately standing up and apologizing to the man: "So you are the leader, my apologies."
Xiaomi was a step slower but still followed Wei Ziang and stood up.
The man waved his hand and sat down across from them: "Don’t Xuyu Dynasty merchants often come to buy cattle and sheep?"
The former border countries indeed had conflicts with Xuyu Dynasty, but that was more than ten years ago.
These ten years were enough for both sides to ease relations, let alone such small tribes near the border often trading goods with Xuyu Dynasty, making their relationship quite friendly.
Wei Ziang pulled Xiaomi to sit down again: "Indeed, but this time, my brother is getting married, and next month is my parents’ birthdays. They love beef and mutton, so we want to buy more to entertain guests."
As Wei Ziang spoke, Xiaomi nodded like a chick pecking grains, indicating that her brother was right.
The man, though less expressive, merely nodded at Wei Ziang’s explanation: "How much do you want?"
Wei Ziang quickly said: "Twenty cattle and twenty sheep, half male, half female."
The man was a bit surprised; usually, buyers wouldn’t specify whether they wanted males or females.
Of course, he didn’t think much of it. Yaks and sheep grow well on the prairie but not as well elsewhere.
So even if Wei Ziang’s request was odd, he just nodded: "OK, twenty taels for a cow, five for a sheep, non-negotiable."
This price wasn’t cheap, but also not expensive, lower than the prices in Lishi City.
Wei Ziang nodded immediately: "No problem, do you prefer silver notes or Silver?"
"No silver notes."
That meant silver it was.
"No problem, tomorrow morning we’ll head back. Could I trouble the leader to pick a few adult cattle and sheep for us by then, so we can drive them home?"
The leader nodded, agreeing.
Just then, the lamb stew was also ready, and the old lady ladled two bowls for Wei Ziang and Xiaomi.
"Try it. Our prairie lamb just needs to be boiled like this with some coarse salt, it’s extremely delicious."
"Thank you, Grandma."
Xiaomi quickly took the bowl and couldn’t wait to start eating.
The lamb was stewed until tender, bursting with juice in every bite. The old lady also provided a small dish of dipping sauce, spicy and pungent, but when paired with the lamb, it was so appetizing it made one want more.
Xiaomi ate two large bowls in a row, burping and clearly full.
"You little girl, so small but with quite the appetite," the old lady was somewhat surprised.
Xiaomi smiled bashfully: "It’s because of Grandma’s cooking skills."
After eating, the leader arranged for someone to take them to rest. The tribe was small, with not many empty tents. Plus, since Wei Ziang kept saying they were siblings, no one doubted them.
But the tent was not small, and an elder sister thoughtfully laid out two mattresses for them.
As soon as they entered the tent, Xiaomi stretched and yawned.
"Tired? You sleep first, I’ll keep watch."
Wei Ziang took off his outer robe, half reclining on the mattress; it was much warmer inside the tent than outside, no need to wear anything so thick.
When they came to the tribe, Xiaoba had gone into the space and now it wasn’t convenient to come out.
Being away from home, amidst so many strangers, it wasn’t an option to sleep directly; keeping a night watch was essential.
Xiaomi nodded, placing an oil lamp by the bed: "Just right, I’ll teach you some phonics and how to use a dictionary. Didn’t you want to read books? It can pass the time, and we’ll switch in the second half of the night."
Ling’er had long prepared study materials, all first-grade introductory materials.
The first encounter with such magical phonics, and the thick dictionary summarizing almost all meanings of words from another world, brought even more amazement to Wei Ziang.
One learning, one teaching, with the weak oil lamp glowing steadily, until Xiaomi yawned repeatedly, and only then did Wei Ziang realize, urging Xiaomi to go to sleep first.